Attack of the Killer Marmot
"I hate ogres." The sun was high, the temperatures scalding, and the air dusty and arid. It was as if everything in the Blades Edge was conspiring to make PeeJee as uncomfortable as possible. The stench of ogres was so strong it was all she could do to keep her lunch down. Stepping around the baking body at her feet, she uncorked the flask of water she pulled out from under her cloak, kneeling in what little shadows she could find in the Bloodmaul Camp. "I hate ogres," she mumbled to herself again as her eyes drifted across the encampment, picking out small details here and there: A cookfire still burning, a marmot racing to and fro, a pile of dung, a keg of that awful beer. PeeJee stepped from the shadows, feeling them cling to her skin as she walked over towards the ogre she had picked out as her next target. A hand reached back with a ball of boiling shadows cupped in her palm. She called for the shadows to wreck havoc on her target then let the ball fly through the air, "Next time I see that dwarf, I'm going to tell him to shove that command of his up his..." She blinked, too surprised to finishing the statement. One of the Marmots she had seen running around the canyon floor had just run past her feet... only to bite the ankle of the ogre she had singled out. "What the..." It didn't take long to dispatch the enraged ogre, it never could make up its puny mind on which target to attack: the weird looking shadow or the annoying marmot biting its ankles. Afterwards, PeeJee just watched in bewilderment as the Marmot then raced across the camp, its behavior odd for any of its kind she had ever seen. Before she could make up her mind on wither to try and capture it for study, another ogre came shambling out of the crude hut and nearly tripped over her. Once again, mid-fight she noticed the Marmot jump in the fray to bite and claw at the ogre's legs. What was going on? She stepped away from the baking bodies and kept her eyes on the Marmot, completely fascinated by its continued oddity. It seemed aggressive, but only against the ogres. It darted around and between her legs, almost as if trying to get her to follow it. Shrugging her shoulders, she decided why not, worst it could do was lead her to more ogres to kill. As the Marmot darted away from her once more, PeeJee this time gave chase, wondering where it was leading her (though no small part hoped it was away from the stench). She followed it towards the gate out of the camp, still guarded by a couple of ogres. PeeJee could barely believe her eyes when she saw the Marmot pick up a small pebble and toss it towards the ground in front of one of the guards. In predictable ogre fashion, it stepped away from its post, giving PeeJee its back. The ogre never knew what hit it. Once again, the Marmot distracted the other guard for her so she could easily dispatch it before it could even react. With both guards down, PeeJee barely had time to catch a breath that caught in her throat before the Marmot darted out of the camp and down the canyon floor. "Bye Bye ogres!" She secretly thanked the odd little creature. While the air wasn't exactly fresh, compared to the stale stench of the ogre camp it was a fresh breeze from the Veiled Sea. Down the flat ground and past others of its kind it ran, never once pausing or looking back. It soon rounded a corner, darting into the shadows of a small rock and disappearing from view. Frowning, PeeJee kneeled down to try and find where it had gone when she heard a soft chuckle from the shadows to her left. "What? Who's there?" It actually surprised her when a rugged Orc stepped from the shadows with a slightly mischievous grin across his face. PeeJee just blinked. Only when the large wolf padded up beside the Orc, smiling a wolfish grin, did she put the pieces together. "You.." She pointed at the Hunter, "The Marmot?" A questioning finger gestured to where the odd critter had darted into the shadows. Smiling, the Orc nodded. Indeed he had used some hunter trick to help guide the Marmot's actions. "Well that explains everything." She couldn't help chuckle, then bowed her head towards the Orc. It had been the best fun she's had all day. Made putting up with the stench seem almost worth it. The Orc whistled and a Wyvern flew down from the sky to land nearby. He waved goodbye before taking to the sky. PeeJee just watched him go, wondering if it was about time she tried to learn Orcish. She just shook her head, then slipped into the shadows to head back up the canyon. Time to give that dwarf his bloody report. "No one is going to believe me when I tell them this." ~fin~ ---- This is a true story. Thanks to Kreger for brightening up a pretty lousy day! *Original Posting *Other stores about PeeJee Awards